Blank book



(No Model.) 'I

l F. H. H. H. HOFFMANN.

I BLANK 1300K.y No. 501,276.

Patented Jul ,3

, UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK I-I. HOFFMANN AND HERMAN H. HOFFMANN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 501,276, dated July 11, 1893.

Application iiled March 2, 1888. Serial N o. 265,954. (No model.)

Tc- LZZ whom it may concern:

Beit known that we, FRANK H. HOFFMANN and HERMAN H. HOFFMANN, citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have in- Vented acertainnew and useful Improvement in Blank Books, which is fully'set forth in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l represents a perspective View of the book after strapping and ready for the application of the back and covers; Fig. 2, an end elevation of the outside back; Fig. 3, a similar elevation of an inside elastic back; Fig. 4, an end elevation of the book shown in Fig. 2, with the back and boards applied; Fig. 5, a cross-section of the same partly opened; Fig. 6, an end elevation of a finished book fully opened; and Fig. 7, a perspeotive'view of the same closed.

Our invention relates to the binding of blank books, especially those which are large and heavy.

The object of ourimprovement is to obtain a smooth fiat surface on each page when the book is opened and lying upon a desk or other like support; and the improvement consists in a particular construction of the back and its attachment to the book, whereby the central portion of the latter will certainly be raised when the book is opened, so as to provide a flat surface on each side of the line of opening, as will be hereinafter described.

Our invention is an improvement upon Letters Patent No. 264,878, dated September 26, 1882, in so far as it aims to secure the result in the opening of the book mentioned in said patent, but the means, whereby this result is obtained, are radically dierent.

We will proceed to describe the mode of binding a blank book, whereby ourinvention is carried out in practical form in one way, and will then point out definitely in claims the special improvements which we believe to be new and wish to protect by Letters Patent.

In the drawings, A represents the body of the book, composed of the desired number of leaves properly assembled. The usual strapping, a, is applied to these leaves in the usual manner, thus making the usual strapped book, except that we leave off the usual head band. In Fig. 1 of the drawings we have made three lines, runninglengthwise of thestrapping, for purposesof illustration as will be seen presently. The iirst is a dotted line 1, l, at the edge of the back, or close to the bend of the strap around the back of the book; the second line 2, 2, is some distance from the first toward the outer edge of the strap; and the third 3, 3 is just a little farther toward the well-known, the central portion of the book,l

when opened, is not thrown up sufficiently to lay the leaves at and it is very difficult to Write upon the inner portion of the page.

In carrying out our present improvement we measure the distance around the back of the strapped book 'from the line 2, 2 of one side to the corresponding line on the other side of the book and make an inside back, B, upon this measurement, so that when applied to the book it will cover the entire space from one of these lines 2, 2 around to the other. This back B is made of heavy tar board and of sufticient thickness to possess great strength. It is shaped, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, the central portion b being curved regularly, while the edges, Z9', are nearly straight and are slightly inclined inward. This back will have a certain amount of elasticity and it is made so heavy that, if the edges are sprung outward, the strength of .the back is sufcient to throw them back again into normal position vwhen released from the strain. The back B may be made of some material other than tar board, which is suitable for the purpose. In some instances, steel may be employed with satisfactory results. The object is to providea strong stiff back,whieh, at the same time, is somewhat elastic and any material may be used that will produce this result. This back -B is then applied to the strapped book and fastened to the same by a number of strips of muslin, C, which are glued to it and to the strapping, as shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings. The edges of the back will,

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of course, extend to -the lines 2, 2, so that about the entire space, occupied by the usual flexible hinge of blank books, is covered by these stiff elastic projecting edges of the back B. The boards, D, for the cover are then applied and secured to the strapping in the usual way. Their inner edges are arranged on the lines 3, 3, thus leaving a space of about an eighth of an inch between the edges of the boards and those of the back B. There will thus be provided a very narrow hinge at this point and its width is Varied slightly, according to the size of the book. The inner edges of the cover boards obviously do not extend quite so far as usual. As seen in Fig. 4 of the drawings, the cloth strips C are upon the outside of the strapping and the boards D cover the outer ends of these strips together with the outer edges of the strap. The outer back, E, which is of ordinary construction, is then glued on the outside of the back B. This piece is of the same size as in the old style of binding, and if desired the usual hubs are glued to it. The outer covering of leather or other material is then applied as usual and the book finished up in the ordinary way. In the finishing up of the book, however, the hinge or joint rod must, of course, be adapted to the narrow space, which is provided for the hinge. These rods We make preferably with square edges, about an eighth of an inch thick in one direction and a little more the other, and they are placed in the narrow spaces between the edges of the coverboards and the elastic back B and pressed in the usual way. N ow it will be seen that the elastic back is unattached to the book, ex cept at its edges, so that when the book is opened there will beafree space between the strapping and this back, as is always intended in books bound with spring-backs. But it will be Seen that thelines of attachment of theedges of the elastic back to the strapped book are farther forward than in the usual style of binding, so that there is a wider portion of the book when opened, lying between these edges and thrown upward, in the usual way with spring-backs. The elasticity of the back B also permits the wide straight portions at the edges to spring outward, so as to allow the book to be opened. At the same time the strength of this back, in connection with its elasticity will bring these edges back into ordinary position as soon as the book is opened. We will then have the edges of the back lying in a position considerably higher than in books boundthe usual way, and at the same time acting upon a somewhat wider portion of the central part of the open book. The result is that this central portion will be carried upward with certainty and so high that the book will open out with almost perfectly iiat pages on each side. This operation and result are illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings. In Fig. 5 the finished book is shown opened about halfway, when, of course, there will be the greatest outward strain upon the edges of the back. The manner in which these elastic edges spring outward is shown in this figure, and will be clearly obvious by comparing it with Fig. 6, in which the back appears in normal form. Upon opening the book beyond the point shown in Fig. 5, the elastic edges of the back will begin to spring inward to assume their natural position and the central part of the book will be thrown upward, until, finally, when fully opened, the book will appear substantially as shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings. inward inclination of the elastic edges of the back tends to certainty in the operation described, though this feature is not absolutely necessary. We have found the most satisfactory results attending the practical application of our present invention.

Some changes may be made in details of construction and arrangement without departing from the real and necessary features of our invention; and, as already stated, the material of the elastic back may be anything suitable for the purpose and having the required strength and elasticity. We do not limit ourselves, therefore, to the precise details of construction herein shown and described, either in the exact form and arrangement of the parts, or the material from which they are composed.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In blank books, the combination, with the strapped book, of an inner back provided with the curved central portion b, and nearly straight edge sections b integral therewith, said edge sections extending some distance over the sides of the strapped book and being secured thereto at their margins, and the back made from material sufficiently elastic to permit the edge sections to spring outward and then inward as the book is opened, substantially as and for the purposes specified.

2. The combination, with the book A provided with the strapping a, of the elastic back B provided with the integral extended edges b', said edgesextending over the sides of the book, and arranged to sp ring inward and then outward as the book is opened, the boards D, and the attaching strips C, Substantially as and for the purposes specified.

FRANK H. HOFFMANN. Y HERMAN H. HOFFMANN. Witnesses:

CARRIE FEIGEL, J. M. THAGHER.

The slight IIO 

